Yes, yes it can.

Look. Maybe I’ve had bad luck at times, some terrible experiences. Without getting too deep into the weeds, life has taught me that all the good things of your existence can be taken from you in a millisecond. People routinely float through their day-to-day blithely assuming that as life has been, so will it always be.

Bullshit, I say.

Recent events, namely Hurricane Helene, prompted me to write this article. As I understand, much of the American South has been devastated by the effects of this storm, with an untold number of people cut off from supplies and help due to washed away and debris-choked roads. People cannot access safe drinking water, food, or medical care. In addition, internet and cell communications are down for many, compounding the disaster.

To those who can read this, I’d like to suggest small measures that you can do NOW, to help you mitigate disasters that may happen to you.

It doesn’t take much effort or money. Seriously. There are no hidden passwords, no arcane knowledge, and no weird doomsday-preppers stuff. Also, what I suggest doesn’t take up a ton of space in your house or garage. I will only suggest supplies that I have used and possess. None of it costs much, and all of it is perfectly legal and dead necessary when the chips are down.

Rest assured, at some point, the chips will be down. Count on it.

Your primary needs in a disaster are water, shelter, and food. I’d add medical care, communications, and a means of defense as secondary needs, albeit vital.

Let’s start.

The thing at the top of this list is water. Without drinking water, you are out of luck. Period. You need safe water to survive. Most natural sources of water are not safe. You will get sick if you drink it. Sick as in terrible diarrhea. I’ve been there, done that. For months on end. This is failure, and it’s easily avoided. How?

By knowing where there’s a good spring, storing water, or which is the method available to everyone, by keeping and knowing how to use water filtration equipment. I’d suggest my hillbilly drinking water rig. It combines the $7.49 Harbor Freight siphon pump and the Joypur 3/$25 filtered drinking straw. It works incredibly well. In advance of the event, flush the HF siphon pump with hot water to get the factory gunk out of it. Then, attach a Joypur drinking straw to the suction hose on the HF pump. Test it on anything. You stick the filter straw in gross water (the clearer, the better) and slowly pump. Clean water will come out of the discharge end of the pump. It’s that easy. Disassemble the rig, allow it to completely dry, and store it with your “this sucks” gear.

Shelter? Just go buy a tent somewhere adequate for your family or for yourself and know how to set it up. Go with shelter in place or use your vehicle if possible. But do keep a good tent. It’s smart. This could cost fifty bucks or hundreds. It’s your call. For Pete’s sake, if nothing else, buy a high-quality tarp. It’s better than nothing. I thought after the fact that I should tack on bedding. Let’s not forget the humble sleeping bag; I found this low-cost option a while back. BTW, these arrive vacuum-packed and take up very little space. 

Food? You could go nuts in this area, but you don’t need to. Suffice it to say a few cases of MREs, which can be had for as low as $32/case of twelve, go a long way. The rule of thumb is one MRE per person, per day. I’d keep a minimum supply of one week’s food.

Then, there’s medical care. I’d always suggest attending free medical training at a local hospital or fire department. If you ask around, these agencies give free classes to the public—free, for potentially life-saving information. None of you need to be an EMT or a trauma doc to save a life. You can go far with basic knowledge. Also, you might be surprised that many do not even have a rudimentary first-aid kit in their house or vehicle. Please don’t repeat this mistake. For $18 dollars, you can avoid it here.

It sucks to be cut off from the rest of the world. I’ve been there for months on end. Trapped in horrible mountains, surrounded by bad people, with <zero> means of touching base with your loved ones. It was a job requirement for me back then, but right now, it’s a reality for unknown thousands down south. You can easily avoid this if you act now. It’s really nice to have communications. I’d suggest two energy-sipping devices. The first is the $17 XHDATA D-238 shortwave radio. The second is the $40/2 Baofeng UV-5R ham radio. The SW radio takes close to no training to use, and you can find out what’s happening in the broader world. The ham radios take a bit more expertise and practice, but in a serious emergency, they can be used to summon help if the cell towers are down. I’d like to note that in real-world emergencies, THE CELL NETWORKS ARE ALWAYS DOWN. Think about it, pay the money, learn to use the gear. It’s not that hard or expensive.

Then, let’s face it, the world has some shitty people. You need to defend yourself or your family. Also, you need basic tools for just about everything, especially when life sucks. I’m not going to suggest you build some kind of arsenal. That’s not me. Here’s stuff I personally own or have used. The first thing you need is a good knife. This $30 dollar unit will last for a lifetime and is strong and plain. The next thing I’d suggest is a good multitool. I thought to help the readers out because the options here are dizzying, and it’s possible to buy junk, name-brand, or generic. This $32 dollar option is fantastic. It’s also nice to have an entrenching tool, which doubles as a weapon at need. I’m hardly going to touch on firearms, but I will say that the number one survival/defense caliber is the humble .22LR. It is a killer, rest assured. Buy a brick of hollow points and keep it with your rifle, preferably a Ruger 10/22, the best of the breed.

I’d also suggest a power source for your devices independent of household power. Many would say you need a gasoline generator. I disagree for a few reasons. One, a gas generator is a complex machine that takes some degree of expertise to operate safely. Two, it’s going to cost hundreds, at least. Three, they’re noisy. Finally, they require gas, which may be in short supply. Also, laughs, try buying a gas generator after a disaster! I’ll bet my bottom dollar that there’s not a generator to be found in North Carolina right now. Lemme give you the lowest-cost option that works for almost everyone, the cheapo $32 400W vehicle voltage inverter. You plug it into a car’s cigarette lighter port and flip the switch. Presto, you have a means of powering devices or 400W worth of household power. I’d suggest a higher-cost but also great, $230 solar generator. This thing is dead easy to use, rest assured. But as with everything I’ve suggested, knowing how to use it BEFORE your bad day(s) is key.

Finally, there are some other low-cost, nice-to-have items. Even though the first I’d suggest is the humble map compass, I’d never go without one. Get one, and know how to use it. Then, it’s nice to have lighting. I’ll suggest a few options, but there are many. One that’s really cool and endlessly practical is what we called firefly lights in the service. You can buy an $8/8 pack here. Then, there’s an all-purpose, rechargeable LED lantern. Kind of nice to have for $26. I’d also suggest buying a three-pack of Bic lighters at Wally World or a gas station, and for Pete’s sake, learn how to build a fire.

This is my readiness pitch to all of you. The definition of a disaster is an unforeseen event that drops on your lap and screws everything up, or endangers you or your family. This no-shit happens, and you are damn right it can happen to you.

Do like a good Boy Scout, and be prepared. No, you cannot possibly cover all contingencies. But you can cover most with the little bit of stuff I suggested above. It might take up 1/4 of a clothes closet, or a corner of your garage. Oh, OK. It’s better than being stranded and completely dependent upon outside help.

Help that may be weeks in coming. Very shitty weeks, I might add.

Give it some thought, and then maybe open your wallet. ‘Nuff said.